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refraction

re·frac·tion

refraction

 
 
pronunciation:
rih fraek shn
part of speech: noun
definition 1: the bending of rays or waves of light, heat, sound, or the like when passed obliquely from one medium to another with a different rate of transmission.
Because of refraction, objects appear different when you look at them through a substance like water.
definition 2: the ability of the eye to bend light rays so as to form an image on the retina, or the testing of this ability, as by an optometrist.
derivation: refractional (adj.)